Booster construction for loose leaf binder toggle mechanisms



Dec. 24, 1957 F. s. SCHADE BOOSTER CONSTRUCTION FOR LOOSE LEAF BINDER TOGGLE MECHANISMS Filed July 29, 1955 FIGJ INVENTOR FRANK STANLEY SCHADE (A 1 MM BY ATTORNEYS United States PatentfO BOOSTER CONSTRUCTION FOR LOOSE LEAF BINDER TOGGLE MECHANISMS Frank Stanley Schade, Holyoke, Mass., assignor to National Blank Book Company, Holyoke, Mass, a corpol-anon of Massachusetts Application July 29, 1955, Serial No. 525,152 1 Claim. (Cl. 129-24) This invention relates to improvements in ring binders and more particularly to an improved ring opening mechanism of the type widely known in the trade as a booster.

An object of the invention is to provide a booster construction particularly adapted for a low cost toggle plate ring binder mechanism and especially for such mechanisms as are designed to fit the smaller size loose leaf binders. Such smaller sized binders are on the order of four to five inches in length along the binding edge and Iare 1ziesigned to serve as pocket-size memorandum noteoo s.

It will be realized that with this type of mechanism in small or minute sizes a problem arises in providing sufiicient clearance for the proper operation of the various parts. A booster device incorporated into the small binder mechanism must have sufiicient strength to operate properly for the life of the notebook itself. And it must be of a reduced cost.

The nearest prior art known is Patent No. 2,473,663 granted to John Schade on June 21, 1949. It is this prior art which the present disclosure sought to improve for the purpose of providing a more satisfactory device for the smallest size binder mechanism. The present device results in a sturdier booster mechanism. It permits economies in manufacture of the assembled unit. These and other specific advantages will be seen from the following disclosure taken with the accompanying drawings, in which, on a greatly enlarged scale:

Fig. 1 is a plan view of a ring toggle plate unit having a new booster fixed at each end thereof;

Fig. 2 is a perspective view of a preferred form of the booster removed from the assembly of the unit shown by Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a fragmentary central longitudinal section through the end of the assembly of Fig. 1;

Fig. 4 is a section on line 44 of Fig. 3;

Fig. 5 is a bottom View of the assembly shown by Fig. 3;

Fig. 6 is a plan view of one end of a toggle unit having an alternative form of the booster shown by Figs. 1-5; Fig. 7 is a sectional view on line 77 of Fig. 6; and

Fig. 8 is an end elevation showing an end cap arrangement for the unit of Fig. 6.

The assembly of Fig. 1 illustrates a conventional type of ring binder toggle plate mechanism in which the new booster construction has been incorporated at each end of a spring plate 1. The particular embodiment shown is intended to illustrate a toggle ring plate on the order of four or five inches in overall length with a plurality of rings on which pages having a marginal edge length of approximately four inches may be threaded. The invention may be applied to units of a greater length but as will be seen it is particularly applicable to units of the smaller or minute sizes. Also, as indicated by the closely spaced dotted line inner ends at 2 of the toggle plates, the spring plate 1 operatively embraces separate toggle plate assemblies for each set of rings at opposite ends of the unit. The new booster mechanism is thus shown at each end of the plate 1 although in particular applications a pair of boosters may serve as well for a unit in which a single pair of toggle plates extends between the ends of the spring plate.

The spring plate 1 arched in cross section provides the usual side flanges 3 reversely directed underneath the top wall of the plate to engage the opposite outer edges of the pair of toggle plates 4 from which arched ring halves 5 extend to meet in overlying relation to the plate 1. The plates 4 are hingedly mated at their inner edges for the usual toggle action, the hinge line being carried below the edges of the arched top wall of plate 1 in closed condition of the ring halves and over the center upwardly thereof when in open condition. Movement to and from each position is resisted by the spring action of the plate 1 embracing the outer edges of the toggle plate.

Booster structures for operating toggle mechanisms of this type are well known in the trade and are provided to eliminate the need for manually spreading the rings to open them and remove or insert sheets in the assembly. Commonly the ring halves are pinched together to carry them from open to closed position, an operation of a simple nature in contrast to the difficulty of manually spreading the ring halves. In the various booster constructions of the trade a lever is positioned to extend upwardly above the end of the spring plate and provides a thumb piece which may be depressed to force the front end of the lever upwardly against the hinge line portions of the toggle plates and pivot the inner hinged edges thereof to the open position across the center of the toggle joints.

The booster lever is fulcrumed to provide necessary leverage in Various ways. Insofar as is known, however, except for the more elaborate types of booster mechanisms found in the larger toggle units, advantage is taken of the fact that the toggle ring unit will ultimately be fixed to the back panel of a binder cover assembly and in one way or another the leverage or positioning of the booster lever for operation in the assembly is dependent on the properly disposed relation of the back panel portion or attaching means thereof to the toggle ring unit itself. The unit of the present invention is designed to eliminate any relationship whatsoever to the back panel assembly for the proper operation thereof or completion of the assembly therewith to test its final usefulness as a self-contained operating structure.

As will be seen from the drawings two embodiments of the present invention are disclosed. In Figs. 1-5 a preferred form is shown. It is preferred for reasons of manufacturing economy. An alternative form is shown by Figs. 6-8 and as a finished device it will function and operate in the assembly with equal facility.

The preferred form of the booster as best seen from Fig. 2 comprises a single blank of rigid metal forming a frame having a bottom or base plate portion 6 from which flanged side members 7 extend laterally and upwardly and are angled reversely as at 8 for engaging the side flanges 3 and marginal portions of the spring plate 1. As will be seen from Fig. 4 the base portion is thus rigidly spaced from the top wall of the spring plate 1. An end wall 9 (Fig. 3) may be bent upwardly as shown to cap the end of the assembly.

At the front of the base 6 a tongue 10 is turned upwardly terminating in a bent tip 11. A booster lever 12 is shown receiving in an opening 13 the tongue 10 adjacent the front end of the lever.

In assembled position (Fig. 3) the tongue extends through an opening 14 in the plate 1 and the bent tip 11 is turned to overlie the upper wall thereof. The forward tip end 15 of the lever is upwardly curved and rests at the knee of the toggle plates 4. The plate 1 is notched at its extreme end as at 16 to accommodate the lever and the toggle plates are cut away as at 17.

The engagement of the booster frame with the spring plate thus rigidly fixes the frame to the plate. The side wall portions 7 and 8 snugly embrace the flanges 3 and top edge of plate 1 to hold against any shucking movement and the tongue 1% with tip 11 holds it against any movement tending to slide the frame olf the plate. The lever 12 is thus accurately positioned for final operation and will rock on the base 6 as a fulcrum adjacent the base of the tongue. It will thus exert the upward force necessary against the toggle knee joint to part the ring halves as desired.

In the form shown by Figs. 68 the booster frame 26) as shown is nested inside the open end of the spring plate 1. As in Fig. 7 the frame Zil is provided with a base plate 21 having upwardly angled flanged sides 22 which abut the edge of the plate 1 at its underside and lie flat against the flange 3. In this manner the base plate 21 is rigidly spaced from the plate 1. A tongue ll) extends through opening 14 and has a tip 11' bent over the plate. the frame may be rigidly assembled on the plate in final operating position. To provide an end cap arrangement the spring plate flange may have ears as at 23 to bend over the end together with a rear wall section of the frame as shown at 24 (see Fig. 8).

It will be apparent that either booster frame will be finally and accurately positioned for operation exactly as made up and without any chance misalignment of parts as the unit is assembled on the back panel of a usual binder cover structure. The unit may be finally tested for operation before assembly with the covers and without the need for any further testing once it is mounted. The mounting as best shown by Figs. 3 and 5 is made by a usual spacer element and rivet (not shown) extending through the opening at 18 formed centrally of the toggle plates 4 to receive the rivet post in a hole at 19 of the spring plate 1.

The lever 12 thus is fulcrurned properly and What is claimed is:

In a loose leaf ring binder mechanism of a small overall size and including hinged toggle plates and a. spring plate having a top wall and side flanges reversely directed underneath said top wall for operatively embracing the toggle plates, said toggle plates carrying ring halves mating in overlying relation above said plate and an end-most ring being relatively closely spaced adjacent the end of said plate; in combination, booster construction comprising a rigid sheet metal frame with a base plate and upwardly angled flanged side members interengaged with the side flanges and top wall of said spring plate adjacent an end thereof outwardly of the end-most ring and in rigid spaced relation of said base plate below the top wall of the spring plate, an upstanding rigid tongue member of rectangular cross section extending upwardly from the inner end of said base plate and integral therewith, said toggle spring plate having an opening re ceiving the outer end of the tongue member with the tip end thereof engaged flatly against the plate and holding said tongue in said opening and maintaining said frame against movement longitudinally of the spring plate, and a booster lever fulcrumed on said base plate with an opening receiving said tongue at the base thereof the sides of the opening in said lever snugly engaging said tongue member to prevent longitudinal movement of said lever, the inner end of the lever engaging the underside of said toggle plates at the hinge line thereof and the outer end extending upwardly of said spring plate all constructed and arranged as a rigid self-contained booster unit for final operational testing prior to attachment to a cover and back panel assembly, said spring plate and toggle plates having openings spaced inwardly of said tongue for receiving a back panel attachment rivet.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,188,037 Burns June 20, 1916 2,030,473 Schade Feb. 11, 1936 2,041,168 Dawson May 19, 1936 2,473,663 Schade June 21, 1949 2,552,076 Wedge May 8, 1951 

